Five Clever Ways You Should Use a Hot Glue Gun but Don’t
To most people, a hot glue gun seems to be what you need for a homemade decoration or craft. But glue guns have come a long way since your arts and crafts days at summer camp. Hot glue now comes in many types and colors, and you can do more with it than just decor.
Make a non-slip grip
When it dries, the hot glue has an elastic consistency, so you can use it to make a non-slip grip. Apply a small amount to the top of a hanger to better hold slippery clothes, apply to the bottom of slippers to prevent slipping on slippery floors, or use on the bottom of carpet to prevent slipping. layer that won’t damage your floors. When using hot glue in this application, just be aware that the surface you’re applying it to shouldn’t be warm enough to melt the glue – it can lead to a sticky mess.
Install or hang a mirror
Use hot glue to attach the mirror to the frame or backing. You can use a high temperature glue gun and mirror glue and it’s easy to do with very little clean up. The difference when using this type of hot glue is that you need to pay attention to the heating characteristics and the manufacturer’s recommended cure time. In addition to requiring high temperatures to work with glass, hot glue meant for certain things also needs to harden or solidify over a period of time, so keep that in mind to avoid disaster if you’re hanging a mirror.
Make protective legs for furniture
Hot glue can be used as furniture leg protectors or to protect a surface that has a rough object like a flower pot on it. Use a dab of high temperature glue to make a thumb-sized dot at the bottom of the flowerpot, and repeat three or four times all over to make little stems. To align furniture, make sure all glue dots are the same size. If the table or chair starts to wobble, you can level it with hot glue legs by making a slightly larger dot of glue on the short leg. Make sure the glue is cool enough before placing the pots or furniture on the legs so they don’t stick in place.
Use instead of clamp
If you have an oddly shaped piece of wood that is difficult to clamp, you can use hot glue to make the connection stronger. Apply some wood glue to the joint you are making and then, between the lines of glue, apply a few drops of hot glue and then join the joint. The hot glue can hold the joint firmly while the wood glue sets.
Make custom sheaths for your knives.
If knives rattle in a drawer, they probably rub against each other and become dull over time. You can solve this problem and protect yourself from accidental cuts by reaching into the knife box by making a sheath out of hot glue. First, apply Vaseline to the entire surface of the blade. Then, using low temperature hot glue, cover the entire surface of the knife on both sides with hot glue. Wait for it to cool, remove the glue and you have a special knife guard.
Cleaning and security
To remove hot glue if you spilled it, just spray the glue with isopropyl alcohol or apply a little alcohol to the edges of the glue with a swab. Then use a scraper to gently pry up and remove the adhesive. If you accidentally get glue on fabric, you can remove it by heating it with a hair dryer – not enough to completely melt it, but enough to loosen the grip. Then you should be able to clear it. As always, wear proper protective equipment when handling tools: heat-resistant gloves and goggles are recommended.